I’ve had a smile on my face since last weekend because I cannot shake the nostalgia I’ve been feeling since leaving the Fun Fun Fun Fest gates. I spent Saturday and Sunday watching two of my favorite bands in the whole world play live. These bands would be Braid (Champaign, IL) and The Promise Ring (Milwaukee, WI).
I cannot express how much influence these guys have had on me, mostly blueprinting my future music taste to introducing me to my closest, dearest friends. You see, I met them at shows like The Promise Ring, Braid, Jimmy Eat World and The Getup Kids. We all had the same band tees, the same colored Sauconys and Converse, and we all shared a deep love for indie rock. Several Braid and The Promise Ring songs have ended up on all of the mixtapes, CDs and playlists I’ve ever made for these people and everyone else.
Maybe I’m showing my age here, but I’m okay with that. I wouldn’t trade any of the school nights I spent at The Promise Ring shows in the late 90s. It was such a different time then, a time that I miss, and the shows at FFF Fest felt like all those nights before. It was just four dudes with their guitars and drums (and the occasional keyboard).
Braid played all of my favorites like: “First Day Back,” “Please Drive Faster,” “Killing a Camera,” “A Dozen Roses,” “Never Will Come For Us” and “The New Nathan Detroits.”
The Promise Ring lit up the night with “A Picture Postcard,” “Nothing Feels Good,” “Is This Thing On?,” “Why Did Ever We Meet,” “Skips A Beat” and my personal favorite “Make Me A Mixtape.”
It’s good to know the folks at Transmission Entertainment love and miss these guys enough to bring them back. I can confidently say that Fun Fun Fun Fest is easily my favorite music festival. I’m pretty sure they’ve brought back all of my favorites in the combined 7 years they’ve been around (DESCENDENTS!!!!). I’m almost embarrassed to ask for more but maybe they could get a Jawbreaker reunion in the works??? I might explode if that happens.
– Submitted by Amiee Gonzalez, Project Management